The Wolf Diaries
by RedMenace
Summary: Another older fic of mine. A RanmaRuroni Kenshin fic with a twist...


{I apologize for the inconvenient formatting. However, my  
  
computer died and this is the best that could be salvaged...}  
  
THE WOLF DIARIES  
  
A Ranma « - Ruroni Kenshin Crossover  
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **  
  
DISCLAIMER: Ranma belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Viz, et  
  
al; Ruroni Kenshin to others. I make no claims to ownership of  
  
any of the characters, concepts, settings, or plots of these series.  
  
This fanfic is not to be distributed for commercial or personal  
  
gain.  
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **  
  
It was a rainy March night when a small, dim light flickered on  
  
in the guest room of the Tendo home for the first time. It was  
  
the quiet announcement of a new guest at the Tendo Dojo, a  
  
student who was carefully preparing for bed. But first, he had a  
  
promise to keep.  
  
'Dear Father,' Ranma Saotome wrote, carefully composing his  
  
words in a battered leather journal. The book had a weary look,  
  
as if it were an aged fighter who had spent too many days on  
  
the road, and Ranma was well into the book. 'How are you? I  
  
hope you rot, you old bastard.' Ranma frowned and crossed  
  
that last bit out. While technically accurate, it wasn't what he  
  
wanted his father to hear. 'How are you? I've met your friend  
  
Tendo-san for the first time today, and begun my study of the  
  
family art. I also met my fiancee today, which was something of  
  
a shock. I had left my tent in the woods and walked into town  
  
earlier that morning, and waited until the rain had stopped  
  
before going to the dojo...'  
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **  
  
Ranma read the address in his hands as he stood stiffly in front  
  
of the Tendo home. Sure enough, this was the place where the  
  
only remaining master of his father's art resided. Ranma  
  
adjusted his clothes slightly: a deep purple silk shirt, almost  
  
black, of Chinese cut, and loose pants tied over shiny stiff  
  
boots, well shined despite the rain and mud of the day.  
  
Shrugging off the large pack he carried, Ranma set it against the  
  
wall and placed his bokken next to it. He knocked solidly upon  
  
the door and waited for an answer.  
  
A minute later a girl with one brown ponytail thrown over her  
  
shoulder opened the door slowly, holding a broom. "Yes?" she  
  
asked him cautiously.  
  
Ranma relaxed a little and smiled slightly. Executing a small  
  
bow, Ranma replied, "I'm here to see the master of the dojo.  
  
May I speak to him?"  
  
The girl frowned slightly. "My father isn't taking students at  
  
this time, I'm afraid." The boy was better mannered than most  
  
hopeful students, she figured, but that simply meant he wasn't  
  
after Akane, in all likelihood.  
  
Ranma got a slightly flustered look. "Ah, it's not about that, not  
  
exactly. It's a matter of family honor that I need to see him."  
  
Ranma straightened up a bit and gave Kasumi a serious look.  
  
"He'll understand, I think."  
  
"I'll get him." She closed the door and turned towards the  
  
house, her hand covering a smile. That boy was a little too  
  
serious sounding for his own good. She hurried in to get her  
  
father, wondering how honor was involved here. Well, her sister  
  
wasn't the only one who could eavesdrop.  
  
Ranma, for his part, stood there and looked around with bored  
  
curiosity. "All challengers please use rear entrance?" he read,  
  
blinking. He picked up his bokken and idly poked at the dents  
  
and gouges the wood had taken. He was rough on his bokken;  
  
this one didn't have much more life to it. Maybe another fight  
  
or two, that was all. "Hey! Who are you? Another one of  
  
Kuno's kendo goons?" Ranma blinked and turned around.  
  
There was a girl in shorts and a tank top, with a towel draped  
  
loosely over her shoulder, squaring off in a kenpo stance.  
  
Ranma laughed and put his hand behind his head.  
  
"Heh, well, I can see where you'd think I'm a kendoist, but I'm  
  
not. Actually, I'm here to see the master of the dojo. Say, do  
  
you live here? You resemble the girl who answered the door."  
  
Ranma said, wondering why most of the women he met seemed  
  
hellbent on fighting him.  
  
The girl smiled and touched her hair, looking away. "You think  
  
I look like Kasumi?" she said, laughing. 'I wish' she thought.  
  
'Then Dr. Tofu would fall for *me*'.  
  
"Sure." Ranma said, sweating a little. He had no idea what was  
  
going on here, but if it avoided another pointless fight, he was  
  
all for it. He was about to say more, but the gate opened again,  
  
wider this time, and he turned to face both the first girl and the  
  
man beside her. "Are you Tendo-san, the master of the dojo?"  
  
Ranma asked calmly.  
  
The man nodded curtly and looked solidly at him. "Yes, yes I  
  
am. Come with me to the dojo and tell me why honor brings  
  
you here." Ranma picked up his pack and put it on the inside of  
  
the wall, and followed the man to the dojo.  
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **  
  
Soun Tendo frowned deeply and exhaled, blowing a large cloud  
  
of smoke in Ranma's face. Ranma's nose twitched slightly, and  
  
he was glad he had come in his uncursed form. "No. I cannot  
  
take you as a student."  
  
Ranma bowed deeply, from the waist. "I ask for your  
  
forgiveness, then. I wanted to learn the school of my dead  
  
father, but I see this isn't so." He crouched, getting up. Well,  
  
that was a disappointment, but when hadn't his life been full of  
  
those? A man among men endured trouble stoically, and  
  
Ranma's face set into an impenetrable mask.  
  
"Sit." Soun said, his eyes still closed. "I did not say I would not  
  
teach you, merely that I could not take you as a student."  
  
Ranma sat back down, confused. "You probably are unaware of  
  
this, but before you were born, and we were students under..."  
  
Soun looked around nervously, confusing Ranma, but he  
  
shrugged it off as being just another one of Soun's mood  
  
swings. "When we were students together," Soun amended,  
  
"we made an honorable agreement that we would join our two  
  
families through the marriage of our children!" Soun finished  
  
triumphantly.   
  
Ranma chuckled nervously. 'He's GOT to be kidding. Pop, you  
  
better have been drunk when you did this to me...'   
  
"I have not taught Anything-Goes in quite some time, but I  
  
would make an exception for my son in law." Soun added,  
  
nodding to himself. Ranma was too busy sweating to notice the  
  
three thumps from outside the dojo.  
  
He smiled nervously. 'An arranged marriage... just great, Pop, if  
  
you weren't already dead, you would be now.' Ranma was at  
  
least saved from having to say anything by someone barging  
  
into the dojo from outside. It was the jogging girl.  
  
"Daddy!" she yelled. "What is this? How come we weren't told  
  
about this?" Two more girls followed her - one the girl from the  
  
door, Kasumi, and the other someone new, a girl with short  
  
brown hair.  
  
"Daddy, we could have used a heads-up." the newcomer said.  
  
"I'm sure Ranma is a perfectly respectable boy, Akane."  
  
Kasumi said sternly. It would be good for Akane, she felt, to be  
  
betrothed to such a disciplined young man. He might be a little  
  
stiff, but that was just what her little sister needed to mature. It  
  
might end the daily challenges too.  
  
Akane, however, took Kasumi's remark in an entirely different  
  
light. "If he's so respectable, you should marry him, Kasumi!"  
  
she said. That would free up Dr. Tofu for herself.  
  
The middle sister seized on this rather quickly. She knew  
  
nothing about this boy save that his father was dead and he  
  
hadn't even known about his own engagement. That couldn't  
  
possibly be good. "Yeah! Kasumi would be perfect!" she added,  
  
mentally congratulating herself on being quick to back Akane  
  
up on this one.  
  
Kasumi herself got flustered now. "But, Nabiki!"  
  
Nabiki didn't stop, though; she knew the only way to avoid any  
  
chance of getting married off was to bulldoze these two. She  
  
turned to the boy. "She's a great cook, Ranma, you two will be  
  
happy together!"  
  
Ranma sweated more . "But-"  
  
"Kasumi needs a little adventure in her life!" Akane said, having  
  
heard - or overheard, rather - about his trip to China. She didn't  
  
want Ranma or Kasumi to get a foothold in this conversation.  
  
"Ah, Akane," Kasumi ventured; she herself was getting an  
  
expression just as lost and confused as Ranma's. "I-"  
  
"Then it's settled!" Soun said, jovially slapping his hand against  
  
his knee. "Ranma and Kasumi are engaged!" That got the other  
  
two sisters to surreptitiously high-five each other. Ranma and  
  
Kasumi each winced. With family honor tied into this, it would  
  
be incredibly difficult to extricate themselves from this mess.  
  
Kasumi was the first to recover. "Father, don't we get any say  
  
in this?" She gripped her broom, which she had carried over to  
  
the dojo when eavesdropping, and shot her sisters a quick  
  
glance.  
  
Soun shook his head. "No. It was the fondest wish of my  
  
departed friend that our families be joined. Honor demands we  
  
carry out his wishes."  
  
Ranma slumped over, having been pierced by honor. There  
  
wasn't going to be any way out now that his dead father had  
  
been brought into it.  
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **  
  
'... still think Kasumi's a nice enough girl, although her sisters  
  
are another matter. Sticking her with the engagement like that  
  
and being happy about doing it. I don't think Kasumi would  
  
have done the same, if circumstances were reversed. And I  
  
blame one of them for removing the occupied sign on the baths.  
  
Fortunately, I heard Kasumi-dono in the baths and did not  
  
enter.' Ranma set his pen down for a second and shook loose  
  
the day's accumulated stress. Trembling, he sat quietly back at  
  
the desk and continued to write. 'I can't believe you have stuck  
  
me with this and then had the gall to die to make sure I couldn't  
  
dare resist it. You don't even know what I'm going through for  
  
you, you ungrateful bastard.' Ranma smiled, dissipating what  
  
remained of his tension. For once, he'd leave the angry words  
  
on the page; only the idiocy of Jusenkyo surpassed this, and  
  
Jusenkyo was as much his and Ryouga's faults as his father's.  
  
'Jusenkyo. I did not reveal the curse, thinking I would only  
  
study here during the day. How am I to break the news to  
  
them? When will I break the news to them?'  
  
Ranma felt that was a very good question - one good enough to  
  
sleep on. The light in the window darkened, and restful sleep  
  
claimed another victim.  
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **  
  
Well, what do you think? I've decided to rewrite the Ranma as  
  
Saito's great-great-grandchild fic, seeing as there was a fairly good  
  
response to the idea. The original was intended for a spamfic, so a  
  
substantial rewrite was needed. My thanks to Therm for prereading  
  
this for me.  
  
I'm on a roll....   
  
THE WOLF DIARIES   
  
A Ranma «« - Ruroni Kenshin Crossover   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
DISCLAIMER: Ranma belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Viz, et   
  
al; Ruroni Kenshin to others. I make no claims to ownership of   
  
any of the characters, concepts, settings, or plots of these series.   
  
This fanfic is not to be distributed for commercial or personal   
  
gain.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
Fanged boy, fanged sword.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
Ranma wrote her next entry with a scowl on her face. The   
  
reason for the scowl would be evident to anyone who could   
  
have seen her - she was cute. Nauseatingly cute. Of course, this   
  
was the normal state of affairs for her cursed form, but usually   
  
her boring and oppressive clothes canceled that out, leaving just   
  
the intimidating face of a powerful martial artist instead. But   
  
today, all her clothes were in the wash. Hence her current attire,   
  
a pink set of overalls with the word 'China' on the front. She   
  
grumbled, then settled down to writing. 'Hello, father, how was   
  
your day? I had a normal day: beat on Kuno, go to school, beat   
  
on Kuno again, practice Anything-Goes, practice my Hirazuki,   
  
retire. My old rival Ryoga dropped by and got lost as well,   
  
though unfortunately we had no fight. I think soon I will   
  
practice my unarmed kenpo on Kuno and forgo the bokken. He   
  
is too useless for further practice with the sword.' She smiled   
  
and made no mention of her attire. 'Kasumi-dono seems to have   
  
gotten used to the curse. At least, that is the only explanation I   
  
can have for being given these clothes today...'   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
"How do they fit, Ranma?" Kasumi asked, looking at her   
  
unintended fianc‚‚. The fact that said fianc‚‚ was currently a girl   
  
dressed in one of Akane's outfits currently brought a slight   
  
strain to her smile, but she put up with it. Ranma's curse was   
  
the one blemish on an otherwise fine young man, well-   
  
mannered, disciplined, and skilled in the art. It had given her   
  
quite a shock, when Nabiki told her about the curse, and   
  
Ranma's subsequent demonstration. Even now, whenever she   
  
saw the redhead she was slightly frightened by the presence of   
  
something supernatural, a magic previously denied to exist.   
  
"It seems to fit well enough," Ranma said, ignoring the fact that   
  
it did not, in fact, fit well enough. It was a little tight in the   
  
chest and loose in the hips. But Ranma figured that was   
  
something best left unsaid. Sparring with Akane in Anything-   
  
Goes was annoying enough already - she steadfastly refused to   
  
admit how much of a disadvantage her unarmed style had. Sure,   
  
an unarmed fighter couldn't be disarmed and was more flexible   
  
- but a weapon gave a fighter more than enough range and   
  
power to compensate.   
  
Ranma gave Kasumi a little smile before going out to the dojo.   
  
She still hadn't figured out whether this was some passing   
  
phase with Mr. Tendo, and therefore something just to outlast,   
  
or something more serious, in which case she should either   
  
figure a way to stop it or learn to live with it. Ranma dismissed   
  
it on entering the dojo; either way, she should simply stall right   
  
now. She looked at her sparring partner for kenpo, currently   
  
sporting a huge shiner. Ranma's unarmed Gatotsu had been   
  
quite the surprise to Akane, that first time.   
  
"So, Ranma, you ready for today's match?" Akane said, giving   
  
Ranma a glare. The redhead simply cracked her knuckles and   
  
gave Akane a bloodthirsty glare.   
  
"I'm always ready. The question is, are you ready?" The two   
  
dispensed with such preambles as bowing or taking stances.   
  
This was a pure fight between the two; and they both already   
  
knew all they needed to know about their opponents. Every   
  
time Ranma and Akane fought Ranma came as a girl, to even   
  
the odds a bit. In any fight with Ranma she would give away   
  
speed and attitude. Adding reach and weight to that would   
  
negate the point of sparring.   
  
Ranma smirked and blurred, causing Akane to instinctively step   
  
back and guard her face and ribs. There was a time when Akane   
  
always went on the attack and neglected her defense. That had   
  
lasted only two matches against Ranma's inhuman speed and   
  
brutal, unsophisticated attacks. 'She might be invincible with a   
  
sword,' Akane thought, deflecting the first, blindingly fast   
  
punch to her head, 'but she's got a lot to learn about kenpo!'   
  
These fights had taught Akane all the difference in the world   
  
between skill and power.   
  
Ranma exploded into a foot sweep, turning the momentum of   
  
the missed punch into another attack, just as she would have   
  
with her bokken. Akane slammed one fist into her leg as she   
  
struck, robbing her blow of much of its strength and sending a   
  
jolt of pain up her leg. It was easily ignored, however; Ranma   
  
had received much worse in her kenjitsu training. Ranma   
  
jumped up from the ground, using her lower body strength -   
  
undiminished, unlike her upper-body strength - to drive a   
  
powerful punch into Akane's jaw, knocking her back.   
  
Ranma and Akane sized each other up again. Again Ranma   
  
blurred forward, nearly vanishing from Akane's sight. This time,   
  
however, her block met air, as Ranma had simply moved to her   
  
side. She received a punch to the ribs, and then Ranma   
  
exploded all over her, hammering her with repeated hooks and   
  
straights as if she were a boxer taking on a punching bag.   
  
Akane rolled back with the punches, then tripped Ranma by   
  
extending her leg slightly and punching Ranma over it. She then   
  
spun fully around, bringing her leg up and swinging it down in a   
  
brutal axe kick. Ranma simply thrust out her legs, catching her   
  
knee with her feet as she started the downswing and throwing   
  
her to the ground.   
  
"STOP!" Soun yelled, having seen enough for today. Both of   
  
his students sat up, waiting to listen for his analysis. Ranma had   
  
a relaxed, even bored, expression on her face; Akane seethed   
  
and breathed with repressed anger and energy. Already her face   
  
began to swell up with the bruises of today's fighting, and blood   
  
started to dry on her cheeks. Soun turned to Ranma first.   
  
"Excellent. You've improved much in the adaptation and   
  
improvisation required by the school of Anything Goes. Still,"   
  
he said, holding up a hand and ticking off points, "for one, you   
  
still haven't gotten your kenpo forms down correctly. Second,   
  
you rush to the attack too readily. And third and most   
  
importantly, you concentrate on the attack in the fight too   
  
much, even more so than Akane did." Ranma nodded; that was   
  
the same trouble he had been having ever since he started this   
  
training a week ago. The years of training in the Hirazuki, the   
  
parallel thrusting techniques of his school, had instilled a lot of   
  
habits which were the complete opposite of Anything-Goes.   
  
"Akane, you've improved quite rapidly ever since you began   
  
sparring with Ranma." Soun said. Akane went from concern   
  
over how she'd look tomorrow to attentiveness. "You've   
  
improved in your ability to react to improvised and unorthodox   
  
attacks, especially given Ranma's lack of kenpo training. Also,   
  
you are no longer always throwing the first strike in your   
  
fights." Privately, Soun thought that this lesson had been taught   
  
only because Ranma was even more aggressive and ten times   
  
faster in her footwork. "And your endurance improvement is   
  
nothing short of remarkable. Why, it was just last week that   
  
Ranma took you out with one punch." That punch had been   
  
Ranma's unarmed Gatotsu, which also put a hole in the dojo   
  
wall and sent Akane into the pond unconscious. That one blow   
  
had completely deflated his daughter's ego and allowed him to   
  
start actually training her again.   
  
"Still, you both have lots of room for improvement. Ranma,   
  
stand up and copy this kata..."   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
Later that night, Ranma was practicing her kenjitsu in the back   
  
yard, repeatedly thrusting at the air with the blade. There was a   
  
steady whoosh-whoosh-whoosh rhythm. made by the blade that   
  
calmed Ranma. Her bokken was relatively unblemished,   
  
showing only a single nick from when she had fought Kuno   
  
earlier in the day. Of course, it was only a day old, her previous   
  
bokken having snapped on Kuno's thick skull. Kuno had seen   
  
her female side for the first time and gone completely nuts over   
  
it, challenging her for the privilege of a date and getting himself   
  
even more thoroughly clobbered than usual. It was the second   
  
time she had used her powerful technique, Gatotsu, on the fool,   
  
but in her mind there was no question the fool deserved it.   
  
Unfortunately, she thought she had revealed her curse to the   
  
idiot boy by using that technique. Even more unfortunately, she   
  
was wrong. He really did redefine stupid.   
  
Nabiki snapped several photos of Ranma slashing at the air in   
  
Akane's pink overalls from her perch in the bushes. She had a   
  
zoom lens on, as Ranma seemed to have some sort of people   
  
radar that alerted her to her presence. Even the normally   
  
unnoticed Gosunkugi had been seen by Ranma. Still, photos of   
  
'the pigtailed girl' were worth big bucks from Kuno, and she   
  
was determined to get them. "Hello, Nabiki. You're not taking   
  
pictures of Ranma, now, are you?" Kasumi said, surprising   
  
Nabiki.   
  
"Ah..." Nabiki said, realizing there really wasn't any way of   
  
hiding it. "I suppose I am." She looked at what Kasumi was   
  
carrying. "You bringing Ranma something to drink, sis?" she   
  
asked.   
  
"Of course." Kasumi answered, smiling. She wasn't distracted,   
  
however. "As long as you're taking pictures of Ranma working   
  
out like you do of Akane, I won't say anything. But if you start   
  
taking other pictures...."   
  
"I get the hint, OK, OK," Nabiki said, having Kasumi off. "Go   
  
over there and talk to her before she snaps out of whatever   
  
trance she's in."   
  
Ranma didn't notice Nabiki snapping away or Kasumi walking   
  
towards her because her mind was solely on stabbing at the   
  
image of Kuno she saw with her mind's eye. "Ranma?" Kasumi   
  
said, causing Ranma to immediately stop and turn to her,   
  
blinking. "Would you like something to drink?" Ranma wiped   
  
away the sweat from her face and realized just how angry she   
  
had been, and how much control she had lost, simply because of   
  
the twit.   
  
"Sure, Kasumi, I would." Ranma poured herself a cup of the   
  
lemonade Kasumi had brought out for her.   
  
"I heard you and Akane sparred again today." Kasumi said   
  
conversationally, as Ranma downed the entire cup in one gulp.   
  
"Feh." Ranma said, looking away. She then poured herself   
  
another cup of lemonade and stared at it for a few seconds.   
  
"She's really not that bad, you know, for an unarmed fighter. She's   
  
just.. you know.." Ranma trailed off, searching for a diplomatic   
  
way to put it. Failing, she shrugged. "She's stubborn."   
  
"Is it really so necessary to fight her so hard?" Kasumi asked.   
  
"I've never seen her with so many bruises before." She then   
  
drank her own cup of lemonade.   
  
"Better I put them there than someone else. 'Sides, I wouldn't   
  
have to work her over so much except I'm doing it barehanded.   
  
Give me my bokken and it's over in one shot, same as Kuno."   
  
Ranma said, then gulped down her second cup of lemonade.   
  
"Thanks, Kasumi," she said, handing her back the empty cup. "I   
  
dunno. She needs to learn just how hard a fight can be right   
  
now. There's no way she'd beat some of the people I've tangled   
  
with the way she is now. If she wants to be a 'real martial   
  
artist', she's just going to have to realize bruises come with the   
  
territory." Ranma resumed stabbing at the air again.   
  
Kasumi watched her for a while, unquestioning, simply wearing   
  
Ranma down by boring her eyes into the back of Ranma's head.   
  
"I know, I know, she ran to her father after I used that modified   
  
Gatotsu on her. That was overkill and we all knew it. But your   
  
father knew that that was a lesson Akane had to learn   
  
someday." Ranma put her bokken down and glanced over at   
  
Kasumi. "I guess he couldn't do it himself."   
  
Kasumi watched Ranma as she continued her practice. "Where   
  
did you learn your kenjitsu, Ranma?" she asked. Ranma hadn't   
  
ever really said anything about it. "What style is it?"   
  
That certainly got Ranma's attention. She sat down next to   
  
Kasumi and put the bokken in her lap. "My family's style traces   
  
itself all the way back to the Bakamatsu, the Revolution,"   
  
Ranma said, warming up to his subject. "There are plenty of   
  
arts that are older, but it has a lot of history in it even so. The   
  
Hirazuki was first developed by the Shinsengumi..."   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
'..she was really interested to learn about my style of kenjitsu.   
  
It's kind of funny, because she doesn't seem to know much   
  
about the history of Anything-Goes. Oh well. I'm thinking of   
  
teaching her a little bit of kenjitsu myself, and maybe Akane as   
  
well, if I can get her to train with a weapon she's associated   
  
with that dunce Kuno.' Ranma paused, then resumed writing. 'I   
  
still haven't solved my major problem, though, which is what to   
  
do about the lack of a suitable sparring partner. Sure, I can fight   
  
Akane, but that's only approximating an equal match because I   
  
have to stick to straight kenpo as much as possible. Maybe   
  
Ryoga will stay around next time he shows up - probably in a   
  
few years. He only was here for what, five minutes before   
  
getting lost? Anyhow, I'm turning in. Stupid curse. I wonder   
  
what you would have turned into, fi you had come with me to   
  
Jusenkyo? A sloth, probably, or maybe a big, fat, ugly pig.   
  
Good night,' she finished, then turned out the lamp.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
Ranma's next entry was far more exultant in tone than most.   
  
Flush with the glow of victory, he hastily scribbled down his   
  
thoughts on his best fight to date. "I bet you'd be proud of the   
  
fight I had today, you fat slob! Ryoga beat the odds and found   
  
his way back into town in only five days. I tried to make   
  
restitution to him for the bread feud, but, luckily, he refused. I   
  
knew I would get a true test of my abilities when I saw the look   
  
in his eyes...'   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
"Enough talk!" Ryoga yelled. "Die, Ranma!" He ran forward,   
  
jabbing at Ranma with his umbrella. Ranma easily rolled the   
  
weapon aside and stood his ground, forcing Ryoga to look him   
  
in the eyes from about five inches out.   
  
"You don't suppose you could tell me what this is all about   
  
then, do you?" Ranma asked, then dodged a point-blank punch   
  
from Ryoga. "Guess not! Then I'll beat it out of you." Ryoga   
  
jumped back quickly and then leapt at him.   
  
"It's because of you that I've seen hell!" he yelled, swinging at   
  
Ranma, who easily dodged the attack and swirled into a   
  
powerful slash, which Ryoga deflected by opening his umbrella   
  
to use as a shield. Ranma's slashes bounced off of the makeshift   
  
shield, and he had to scoot out of the way as Ryoga tried to   
  
batter him down with the shield.   
  
"What is that, kevlar? Nice touch." Ranma said, noting the   
  
strength of the fabric. "Let's see if I can put a hole in it   
  
anyhow." Ranma took up the now-familiar stance of the   
  
Gatotsu, sending a ripple of murmurs through the crowd.   
  
Ranma exploded forward in a cloud of dust kicked up by his   
  
powerful lunge. Ryoga's umbrella snapped open again, ready to   
  
deflect the powerful thrust of the Gatotsu - just as Ranma   
  
expected.   
  
The tip of Ranma's bokken skated along the side of the   
  
umbrella until it reached the open air, and then quickly became   
  
a sideways slice that chopped into Ryoga's right armpit, nearly   
  
causing him to drop his umbrella. Ranma's return strike met his   
  
umbrella in a bone-rattling collision. Ryoga, desperate, thrusted   
  
the umbrella right at Ranma's head, using his injured arm to   
  
push the bokken down. Ranma quickly raised his bokken and   
  
disarmed him, sending the umbrella flying back.   
  
Ryoga, though, was also looking to take away his opponent's   
  
advantage. He quickly tied one of his bandannas around   
  
Ranma's wrist to prevent Ranma from getting out of hand-to-   
  
hand range. "This is it!" he yelled, punching at Ranma, secure in   
  
the outcome of the fight now that he was inside Ranma's guard.   
  
Ranma twitched his head to the side, causing Ryoga to just clip   
  
his pigtail, then stomped on Ryoga's foot with one of his heavy   
  
boots. Ranma then smashed the butt end of the sword against   
  
Ryoga's head, trying to break Ryoga's grip and get away.   
  
Ryoga pulled Ranma forward violently and snapped his fist into   
  
Ranma's cheek full force, causing the bandanna to snap and   
  
Ranma to fly back and roll along the ground. Ranma groaned   
  
and rubbed his face. Ryoga leapt at Ranma. "This is it! The final   
  
blow!" he yelled.   
  
"That's right!" Ranma said, suddenly crouching, his face a   
  
bruised mess on the right side. "Gatotsu, third stance!" he yelled   
  
out as Ryoga closed in. The bokken snapped aloft, outer edge   
  
facing up, the back edge cradled in Ranma's hands as every   
  
muscle in his body tensed like a spring. His body flew upwards,   
  
a rocket, and struck Ryoga in the ribs with thunderous force   
  
that snapped the bokken five inches above the hilt. Ranma   
  
landed, throwing the useless chunk of wood away; Ryoga   
  
crashed into the ground, a crumpled ball.   
  
Ranma looked over his shoulder for a second, then turned away   
  
and headed for the dojo, soon to be followed by Akane, Nabiki,   
  
and the other students of Furinkan High, many of whom patted   
  
Ranma and congratulated him on his recent victory. Ranma was   
  
still smiling and laughing when Ryoga stood up shakily and   
  
froze everyone. "It's not over yet." he said, holding his side. He   
  
was sure a few ribs were broken. Never mind. It was an   
  
unarmed fight, now, and he was sure he could beat Ranma.   
  
Ranma waved off the crowd. "He's not down yet." he said, and   
  
took up a loose stance, legs set apart in order to easily move.   
  
Ranma realized that Ryoga's endurance meant that he'd have to   
  
finish this quickly, while he was still in major pain from the anti-   
  
air Gatotsu he had used against the lost boy. Looking around he   
  
saw Ryoga's umbrella behind the lost boy. Ranma smiled and   
  
blurred, shooting towards Ryoga.   
  
Ryoga screamed out a challenge and fired a powerful kick at   
  
Ranma, only to have Ranma throw himself to the ground and   
  
tumble past Ryoga. Easing out into a slide, Ranma picked up   
  
the umbrella - which was surprisingly heavy - and got in the   
  
Gatotsu crouch again. "The advantages are all mine." Ranma   
  
said, smirking.   
  
"That doesn't matter to me! This is about more than bread!   
  
More than the curse!" Ryoga said, waiting. He didn't have long   
  
to wait. Ranma once again surged forward with the incredible   
  
force of the Gatotsu, but Ryoga undid his belt and slashed   
  
through the umbrella's sides as if it were a sword. Ranma   
  
quickly turned the now useless thrust into a punch into Ryoga's   
  
battered ribs, causing him to cough up blood. But he   
  
persevered, slashing Ranma along the arm with his sword-belt   
  
before Ranma unloaded several more shots into his broken ribs,   
  
sending him into a dreamless sleep.   
  
Ranma dropped Ryoga's battered, bleeding body on the   
  
ground. "Well, there's no doubt about it this time. He couldn't   
  
get up if he tried. Let's get him over to the doctor's."   
  
"The doctor needs to look at you, too, Ranma." Nabiki said,   
  
concerned. Ranma hefted his battered opponent over one   
  
shoulder and started lugging him towards the clinic.   
  
"I've gotten lots of injuries like that. It comes with the   
  
territory." Ranma smirked arrogantly. "Ryoga didn't do enough   
  
to make me need to see the doctor."   
  
"He had enough to ruin your bokken and shirt." Akane said   
  
drily. "Are you sure you don't need to see the doctor? How   
  
about your face?" Akane said, then poked the giant bruise   
  
developing on his face.   
  
"Ow! Damnit, that hurts!" Ranma said, cringing. "I didn't say it   
  
didn't hurt, you idiot, just that I don't need doctors poking it."   
  
"You should have Tofu look at it anyhow. He's very good."   
  
Akane said.   
  
"Very good," Ranma said, annoyed. "What, you have a crush   
  
on him or something?" Ranma completely missed the   
  
embarrassed and angry expression on Akane's face, or the   
  
mirthful one on Nabiki.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
"He didn't say." Ranma told Dr. Tofu, as the doctor bandaged   
  
Ranma's arm where Ryoga had cut it. "He just kept going on   
  
about how it was all my fault."   
  
"Maybe it was about Jusenkyo." Tofu said, wrapping tape   
  
around the bandage to hold it securely in place. "I wouldn't be   
  
very happy if someone cursed me to turn into a piglet."   
  
Ranma dismissed that. "Sure, he was angry, but we had a fight   
  
there. It was both our faults and he knew it. This is something   
  
else. Something that happened afterwards. But what?" Ranma   
  
remained deep in thought, trying to think of what it could   
  
possibly be.   
  
"Whatever it was, it's enough for him to be beyond all reason."   
  
Tofu said, glancing at the still unconscious and heavily   
  
bandaged fighter on the other bed. "You'd better talk to him   
  
about it."   
  
"Can't, not while he's out cold," Ranma said, putting his shirt   
  
back on. "Dumb stubborn pig probably won't tell me when he's   
  
awake, either. Tell him to look for me at the Tendo Dojo,"   
  
Ranma said as he walked out the door.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
'..in retrospect, telling Ryoga to look for anyone anywhere was   
  
an amazingly bad move. Still, my old rival seems to have   
  
improved greatly since I last fought him in Jusenkyo. I didn't   
  
think anyone could have taken a full-strength Gatotsu, third   
  
stance, and kept fighting, much less pressed me as he did. Still, I   
  
really want to know what has him so angry.' Ranma drifted off   
  
into thought for a while, still trying to figure that one out. "I   
  
suppose I'll find out sooner or later,' he wrote after returning to   
  
reality. 'In the meantime, I have a good sparring partner again.   
  
My kenjitsu skills may finally improve again. Just remember that   
  
when I join you someday. You have a lot to answer for, old   
  
man.'   
  
Ranma turned out the light again and went to sleep. He figured   
  
he had at least a week before Ryoga healed enough to fight   
  
again and an undetermined amount of time beyond that until   
  
Ryoga found his way back. That was more than enough time to   
  
work on his unarmed skills and close the considerable hand-to-   
  
hand gap between himself and the fanged fighter.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
A burst of Carrot-ken, and another chapter finished! Hah!  
  
THE WOLF DIARIES   
  
A Ranma «« - Ruroni Kenshin Crossover   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
DISCLAIMER: Ranma belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Viz, et   
  
al; Ruroni Kenshin to others. I make no claims to ownership of   
  
any of the characters, concepts, settings, or plots of these series.   
  
This fanfic is not to be distributed for commercial or personal   
  
gain.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
Wolves on Ice!.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
In what was now becoming his accustomed hour to write at the   
  
Tendo home, Ranma Saotome opened up his journal and   
  
penned another entry. 'Hello, old man.' he began, as usual. 'I   
  
truly expected Ryoga to be back by now; however, he seems to   
  
be more lost than usual. Or perhaps he was more injured than I   
  
expected. Either way, I've gotten less practice than I'd like.   
  
Kuno is an idiot, nothing else but, and I'm not getting any   
  
better fighting him every day. In fact, I now have the school   
  
Kendo team begging me to challenge him for the school team.   
  
Too bad for them I'm not much of a team player. I'm coming   
  
along well enough in the Anything-Goes style; I've even gotten   
  
Akane to agree to a bit of kenjitsu training. My personal   
  
opinion is she just wants to be able to embarrass Kuno at his   
  
own game. Akane may be luckier than I in having opponents;   
  
Kodachi the Black Rose gave her a good workout in the school   
  
Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastics match. Too bad she broke her   
  
wrist trying to copy my Gatotsu - I will give her points for   
  
being crazy enough to try it, however. As far as my fiancee   
  
goes, I may yet forgive you. Kasumi is a nice girl, though I now   
  
need to train her to fight...'   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
"I didn't know you knew how to skate, Ranma." Kasumi said,   
  
gliding along next to Ranma in the town skating rink.   
  
"Well, I didn't until I was training." Ranma said, thinking  
  
back   
  
to the things his uncle would force him to do. "See, it's hard to   
  
get a big push off the ice with your legs. You can't explode   
  
quite the way you can on dry land. So my uncle would have me   
  
practice on the lake behind his house in the wintertime. And   
  
sometimes I'd skate on the lake because I had nothing better to   
  
do, too."   
  
Kasumi silently followed along for a while before talking.   
  
"That's the most I've ever heard you say at once." Ranma   
  
scratched his head and looked sheepish. "For me, ice skating   
  
reminds me of my mother. She brought Nabiki and I out to this   
  
rink sometimes when we were little." Kasumi smiled. "It's   
  
funny. Nabiki avoids ice skating rinks for the same reason,   
  
because it reminds her of mother."   
  
"Look, there's Akane." Ranma said, pointing.   
  
"Hey! Ranma! Oneechan!" Akane said, getting out on the rink   
  
with a few of her friends from Furinkan. "What are you doing   
  
here?" She then remembered something. "Ranma? What about   
  
the ice? Uh, doesn't that count as cold water?"   
  
"I don't plan on falling." Ranma laughed.   
  
"I forgot you two were out here. Otherwise-"   
  
"Oh, it's OK, Akane." Kasumi said. "We don't mind."  
  
Kasumi   
  
didn't know whether Ranma minded or not, actually, but she   
  
elbowed him to let him know he'd better not mind. He just   
  
nodded.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
Ranma and Kasumi later escaped Akane's group and made their   
  
way to a nearby ramen shop. While it wasn't really the greatest   
  
of dates, it wasn't really supposed to be, either. Ranma had   
  
helped Kasumi get her chores done early to get her some time   
  
to enjoy herself.   
  
Except that people weren't letting Ranma enjoy himself.   
  
"Come on, Ranma, you've got to know something about this   
  
girl!" It was a few of his classmates from Furinkan High   
  
harassing him about his girl side. Ranma simply stonily ignored   
  
them and ate his ramen with a scowl. "Damn, man, don't give   
  
us the cold shoulder like that!"   
  
"Yeah, it's your duty to help out your fellow man!" another   
  
student chimed in, missing the fact that Ranma's irritation was   
  
growing. Akane and Kuno had conditioned them to expect that   
  
'angry' was equal to 'screaming'.   
  
"No." Ranma said, taking half a second away from his food.   
  
"Please, stop bothering us," Kasumi pleaded. "He doesn't  
  
want   
  
to talk about her."   
  
"Yes, you should leave her alone." The new speaker, Ranma   
  
saw, was a jackass. He had smarminess written all over him. He   
  
paused, chopsticks halfway to his mouth, as he waited. Sure   
  
enough, the guy put his hand on Kasumi's chin and lifted it up.   
  
"Such a one as this should-" SPLAT. Noodles slid down his   
  
face, expertly flung there by Ranma.   
  
"So," he said, then stopped, sizing up Ranma. Ranma had   
  
returned to eating his ramen, as if nothing had happened, sitting   
  
ramrod straight in his chair. "I'll consider that a challenge."   
  
"Consider it accepted as well." Ranma said, patting his bokken   
  
under the table, where it couldn't be seen. "Do you want to get   
  
beaten senseless in here, or would you rather get clobbered out   
  
in the street?"   
  
The man cleared his throat, fully aware that all eyes in the   
  
ramen shop were now on him. "My name is Mikado Sanzenin-"   
  
"If you're going to fight TAKE IT OUTSIDE!" The owner of   
  
the ramen shop pointed to the door. "I don't need you damn   
  
kids destroying everything again!"   
  
"-As I was saying, I am Mikado Sanzenin. And I would not   
  
challenge you to such an uncultured duel. We will meet on the   
  
rink, in a week's time."   
  
Ranma pulled out his bokken and laid it on the table. "Fine with   
  
me." Mikado looked at the bokken and raised his eyebrow.   
  
Well, this was Nerima...   
  
"Just so the two of you are ready. See you next week." Mikado   
  
walked off. Ranma nearly fell out of his chair - nearly, but not   
  
quite.   
  
"The TWO of us?" Ranma said, surprised.   
  
"Yes!" Akane said, suddenly running up to the two.   
  
"Where have you been?" Ranma wondered.   
  
"What?" Kasumi said. "I can't fight!" She was still sitting in   
  
shock.   
  
"Mikado is a practitioner of Martial Arts Figure Skating. That's   
  
always a pair competition," Akane explained hurriedly, "so it   
  
wouldn't just be you, it would be you and someone else."   
  
"What?"   
  
"Does it have to be me?" Kasumi asked.   
  
"That's the stupidest martial art I've ever heard of, and I   
  
thought-"   
  
"I'll take your place, Kasumi! Don't worry!"   
  
"-that Kodachi girl practiced was whacked, but this-"   
  
"Oh, dear, but I think they expect me to fight-"   
  
"I'll make that pervert let me fight!"   
  
And so Nerima remains Nerima - full of chaos, insanity, and   
  
surreality, no matter its inhabitants...   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
'...so I decided to train Kasumi anyhow, just in case they don't   
  
accept Akane as a substitute. I don't understand this town and   
  
its insane martial arts disciplines. Nabiki read me the riot act for   
  
getting her older sister involved in a challenge. How was I   
  
supposed to know? I firmly believe that Akane would also be   
  
pissed, if she wasn't hellbent on replacing her sister in the   
  
contest.' Ranma set his pen down. He had much work to do   
  
before the fight, and a week, in his opinion, was not enough   
  
time. "Besides," Ranma said, addressing the ceiling as he laid   
  
down to bed, "I don't know would be more of a liability,   
  
Kasumi, who knows only the barest rudiments of martial arts,   
  
and is rusty in those, or Akane, who still has a broken wrist.   
  
Either way, it's two on one, basically..."   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
A week later Ranma sat down, still making up his mind even as   
  
he wrote down his entry prior to the fight. Usually Ranma   
  
wrote his entries at night into his battered journal, however,   
  
addressing his thoughts to his hated and fortunately dead father   
  
was always guaranteed to put him in his correct, intense frame   
  
of mind for the fight. 'Hello, father,' Ranma began in his usual   
  
tone, 'I've been training for a week, excepting time taken out   
  
for school and chores, and practicing with Akane and Kasumi.   
  
You would probably view this as a waste of precious time, but   
  
as I viewed you as a waste of precious air, I'm afraid we will   
  
just have to disagree. It was difficult to choose between the   
  
two, however, Akane and Nabiki insisted on Akane's replacing   
  
Kasumi. It turned out to be irrelevant anyhow...'   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
Ranma walked onto the rink calmly, his bokken resting on his   
  
shoulder as he surveyed the crowd. "Impressive."   
  
Akane twitched. "Don't stand like that. You remind me of   
  
Kuno."   
  
Ranma simply moved the bokken to his other shoulder. "How   
  
about now?" he joked.   
  
"Baka." Akane muttered. "Here they come." Sure enough,  
  
the   
  
announcer hyperventilated through their introduction,   
  
showering praise upon Mikado and his partner Azusa, complete   
  
with spotlight and laser light show. "What a bunch of   
  
showoffs!" Akane sniffed.   
  
Ranma smiled and waited until it was their turn to skate out.   
  
Showered with boos from the crowd, Ranma ignored the   
  
masses of people in the stands, except for a small contingent of   
  
Furinkan students which had come to cheer him on. Most of   
  
them were Akane's admirers from the morning crowd, but not a   
  
few of the kendo club were waving signs for Ranma, usually   
  
saying things along the lines of "Save us from this madman!".   
  
Ranma flashed them a quick thumbs-up as he lazily skated to   
  
the center of the rink.   
  
"You are a hard person to find." Mikado Sanzenin said, staring   
  
levelly at Ranma. "Else I would have told you this before - but I   
  
shall steal the lips of your partner." He then looked at Akane,   
  
blinked, and then looked back at Ranma. "Even if she does not   
  
look as good as the girl you were with last week."   
  
Ranma quickly grabbed Akane and wrestled his bokken back   
  
out of her hands. "Just wait a few minutes. I can't clobber him if   
  
you kill him."   
  
"Let me go!" Akane yelled, struggling with Ranma, who   
  
dragged her back. Mikado and Azusa gracefully looped back to   
  
the far end of the rink.   
  
"Let the match begin!" the announcer yelled. "No holds  
  
barred!   
  
Only a complete knockout will finish the fight!"   
  
Ranma held Akane's arms down by her side as she squirmed.   
  
"Don't go off half-cocked. Remember the plan." Turning   
  
around, Ranma extended his bokken defensively, hoping to   
  
keep the two more experienced skaters at bay. Sure enough,   
  
both opposing skaters veered off, unwilling to fling themselves   
  
on Ranma's outstretched blade.   
  
Quickly turning into a tight circle, Azusa on the outside, the   
  
duo had gone halfway around before Mikado dug his skates in   
  
and suddenly spun Azusa around, letting her skates scythe   
  
through the air. "Duck!" Ranma yelled, and Akane let her legs   
  
drop from under her. Ranma spun around and swung his   
  
bokken out to intercept Azusa's kneecaps.   
  
Seeing what was about to happen, she pulled her legs in a bit,   
  
causing the blow to slam into her ankles instead. Fortunately,   
  
her skates took some of the shock, but when Mikado let go of   
  
her she still stumbled to the ice. "Now!" Akane quickly   
  
scrambled back to her feet and the two of them started chasing   
  
Mikado, who skated backwards.   
  
"Two on one, hentai. Let's see you get out of this one." Akane   
  
yelled, as the two chased Mikado across the ice before Azusa   
  
got back in the fight.   
  
Mikado yawned. "Amateurs." He then turned hard in Akane's   
  
direction as he neared the wall, then suddenly spurted forward,   
  
ducking under her wild haymaker as she tried to turn with him.   
  
Ranma, whom he had correctly guessed was much more skilled   
  
at skating, had turned with him and gotten run down by Akane.   
  
"You can always count on amateurs to make at least one fatal   
  
mistake."   
  
Azusa came over, still looking pained. Still, she grabbed   
  
Ranma's ankles and pulled him back, causing him to grab on the   
  
only thing not slippery - Akane - with his left hand in order to   
  
get up. Mikado then grabbed Azusa'a ankles and lifted the   
  
whole mess in the air.   
  
"The dreaded couple cleaver - the Goodbye Whirl!" the   
  
announcer yelled. "No one has ever escaped from this! It's the   
  
end!" The whole group was spinning rapidly now, whirling   
  
madly in the corner of the rink.   
  
"Release her and I'll stop spinning!" Mikado yelled.   
  
Ranma seemed to think about this for a second. "OK." Ranma   
  
opened his left hand, timing it so Akane would slide across the   
  
ice instead of slam point blank into the wall.   
  
Then Ranma gripped his bokken with both hands, and,   
  
overpowering the centripetal acceleration holding him aloft,   
  
curled inwards towards Mikado and Azusa and smashed the   
  
bokken between Mikado's legs in a vicious chop.   
  
Hard.   
  
The Goodbye Whirl immediately fell apart, sending Ranma and   
  
Azusa flying. Azusa slammed into the wall headfirst and was   
  
knocked out cold. Ranma slammed into it shoulder first,   
  
grunting, and then got up. 'That will bruise. Badly.' Ranma   
  
thought, grabbing his injured shoulder.   
  
"That was... uncalled for." Mikado squeaked, his breath coming   
  
in reedy wheezes as he clutched his privates.   
  
'Whatever. Oh, and sorry, but the rules are quite specific about   
  
this." Ranma picked him up by his hair and kneed him in the   
  
face, then let his head bounce off the ice as Mikado's eyes   
  
rolled back into his head.   
  
"Ranma! Look out!" Akane yelled, pointing behind Ranma.  
  
The   
  
crowd shouted too, not in victory - or, as the crowd had mostly   
  
been cheering or Mikado, in defeat - but in alarm.   
  
Ranma turned around to see someone leaping through the air,   
  
descending rapidly at him, fist outstretched, purple hair flying   
  
through the air. Ranma easily slid back a few feet and watched   
  
her crater on the ice.   
  
"T-tone."(1) Shampoo said weakly, her head still embedded in   
  
the ice.   
  
"Shampoo, that was disgraceful," a withered old troll said as it   
  
hopped over the wall surrounding the rink. "Really. Using a   
  
suicide attack as an opening move..."   
  
"Who are you?" Ranma said, bored. His shoulder twinged,   
  
which he ignored.   
  
"Hmm, you are just as rude as Shampoo said." The elderly troll   
  
squinted at him, meeting Ranma's bored stare. "Very strange.   
  
Are you sure you're a martial artist?"   
  
"Ask Shampoo." Ranma said. "I've beaten her up enough."   
  
"Ranma, who is this girl?" Akane asked, crouching by the   
  
purple haired girl pulling herself out of the Shampoo-sized   
  
imprint in the rink.   
  
Ranma continued to stare down the old troll. Not even looking   
  
at Shampoo, not even moving a muscle, he answered her.   
  
"She's this crazy Chinese Amazon girl who's been trying to kill   
  
me. Or marry me. Or something. She doesn't make much sense.   
  
And her Japanese is as bad as my Chinese."   
  
"She's my great-granddaughter," the old troll said, "and your   
  
future wife." She stared back just as intently at Ranma.   
  
"Already got one." Now Ranma's eyes hardened into a steely   
  
squint of their own, as the two engaged in a battle of wills.   
  
"Already have a wife?" Not so much as a blink.   
  
"No, already have a future wife." Ranma cooly answered.   
  
The two remained locked in their staredown for another few   
  
minutes, which had sufficiently bored the audience that they   
  
wandered off, leaving the four of them alone in the rink.   
  
"Shampoo never see anyone stand up to Hiba-chan like this   
  
before." Shampoo said, now standing next to Akane. Cologne   
  
twitched slightly at Shampoo's voice.   
  
"Ha! You twitched!" Ranma said, pointing at her.   
  
"It was a nervous tic," she grumbled back.   
  
"Still, you moved."   
  
"Let's see your muscles remain fully under your control when   
  
you're half my age, sonny."   
  
"No control? You'd better get off the ice. The janitors won't   
  
like it if you crap all over the ice." Ranma said irritably. There   
  
were much better things he could be doing right now - such as   
  
put some ice on his shoulder. It was already quite swollen.   
  
"Impudent little.." Cologne steamed, then poked him in the   
  
chest when he brushed his shoulder. "Let's see how you like   
  
that."   
  
"How I'll like what, you old troll?" Ranma said, turning away.  
  
"You'll see. You'll see." Cologne laughed as she turned away   
  
as well. "Come on, Shampoo."   
  
Shampoo looked at Cologne, then back over to Ranma. "But   
  
hiba-chan..."   
  
"But nothing. Come on. He will come to us soon enough."   
  
Cologne hopped back over the wall and away, quickly bouncing   
  
out of sight. Shampoo followed a few seconds later.   
  
"Whatever. Come on, let's go home." Ranma said, resting his   
  
bokken on his uninjured shoulder.   
  
"Ranma?" Akane said, twitching.   
  
"Oh yeah. Looks like Kuno." Ranma jammed his bokken   
  
through his belt and walked home.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
Later that night a female Ranma was writing in her book. 'I've   
  
never had the urge to kill anyone except you, father, until today.   
  
I can't believe what that old bitch did to me.' Ranma stopped   
  
for a moment and looked at her hand. It was outlined with a   
  
sickly purple-red haze of energy, her battle aura, which she   
  
usually kept tightly controlled. 'I'll get her for this. And I'll get   
  
cured.' Ranma cut short the entry in her journal and wandered   
  
over to her pack. Strapped to the side was a long, slim bundle,   
  
which she swiftly unwrapped. Smoothly, steadily, she drew the   
  
blade out a bit, letting the razor edge catch the moonlight and   
  
send a silver spray of light across her face.   
  
Down in the family room, the Tendos collectively shuddered,   
  
not knowing why.   
  
Smiling, Ranma slid the sword back in her sheath. Not yet, not   
  
now, as pleasant as it would be. She wrapped it back up.   
  
But there was a time coming when she would need steel.   
  
She could feel it.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
And.. the chapter is finished.  
  
THE WOLF DIARIES   
  
A Ranma «« - Ruroni Kenshin Crossover   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
DISCLAIMER: Ranma belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Viz, et   
  
al; Ruroni Kenshin to others. Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko   
  
Takeuchi, although that series is barely used...I make no claims   
  
to ownership of any of the characters, concepts, settings, or   
  
plots of these series. This fanfic is not to be distributed for   
  
commercial or personal gain.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
Cat's Tongue, Wolf's Mind   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
'All things in life are ironic, some moreso than others,' Ranma   
  
wrote in her journal, still female from the effects of the Cat's   
  
Tongue Pressure Point, 'yet nothing in my martial arts career is   
  
more ironic than this. The Anything Goes School, which prides   
  
itself on flexibility, shuns the advances of modern society, while   
  
my own school, the Hirazuki, which is as inflexible as adamant,   
  
embraces it. But that is fine, it's something useful in this case...'   
  
Ranma's mind drifted off as her pen continued to write, almost   
  
on its own, recounting the events of the day.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
"She says the only way to change back is something called the   
  
Pheonix Pill. Naturally, she will only give this to me if I consent   
  
to marrying Shampoo and returning to China" Ranma said,   
  
adjusting the straps on her new boots. The problem with having   
  
an alternate body was that nothing fit. Hot water and the   
  
possibility of suddenly having too much foot in too little space   
  
generally required her to wear her male form's footwear, but   
  
seeing as she was stuck for the forseeable future in her female   
  
body, she felt a well-fitting pair of boots for her female form   
  
was both necessary and desirable.   
  
"That's blackmail." Nabiki noted. She and Kasumi were on the   
  
porch, wondering what Ranma was planning. There was no   
  
school today, and Ranma had just returned from the restaurant   
  
that Shampoo and her great-grandmother had opened.   
  
"It's more than blackmail." Ranma said, smiling. "She knows  
  
I   
  
can beat Shampoo easily - I've done it many times, after all. To   
  
such a female-dominated martial society, that's insufferable   
  
It's not enough to blackmail me. She's got to break me."   
  
Ranma took a cup of tea from Kasumi, who had leaned her   
  
broom against the doorframe, and sat down next to her   
  
currently female fianc‚‚. "Thanks, Kasumi."   
  
Nabiki sat down as well, on a convenient rock Akane had left   
  
there. Akane had recently taken to running while carrying the   
  
rock in an attempt to build endurance. "What do you mean? She   
  
doesn't look that tough."   
  
Ranma smiled, her normal cold smile, and looked at Nabiki.   
  
"She's very fast. Her hand speed is greater than mine. Plus, I   
  
don't trust her. And the events of today justify my distrust. She   
  
showed me a technique that would build up handspeed when I   
  
declined to try to take the pill from her."   
  
Kasumi stopped sipping her tea. "How does that make her   
  
untrustworthy? It sounds as if she's trying to be fair."   
  
Ranma smiled again. "Yes. Except the technique involves   
  
grabbing things out of a fire."   
  
"And you've got that pressure point which makes you sensitive   
  
to heat." Nabiki said, the scheme's full dimensions becoming   
  
clear to her.   
  
"Exactly. She teaches me a technique which I cannot learn at   
  
the time, in hopes of breaking my self-confidence." Ranma   
  
finished off her tea in one gulp and set the cup down, then   
  
turned around to lean in the doorway. "It's a stupid ploy, one   
  
which relies on the victim being arrogant, foolish, and easily   
  
tricked. I'm only arrogant." Nabiki laughed while Kasumi  
  
rolled   
  
her eyes.   
  
"Ranma..." Kasumi sighed. She couldn't help but find  
  
Ranma's   
  
current I-am-an-evil-genius look funny, especially on the petite   
  
face of Ranma's girl side. "What are you planning?"   
  
"Oh, you'll see. That old ghoul will find that things have   
  
changed in the past 300 years..."   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
"Hiya doc." Ranma said, walking easily into the laboratory.   
  
There were better labs, but the doc here owed her big time.   
  
Besides, they had worked together in the past, because of Karo.   
  
In fact, it was partially for some of Karo's junk that was   
  
currently collecting dust out back that Ranma had come. The   
  
rest of it.. well, Ranma didn't want to be reliant on any Phoenix   
  
Pill.   
  
"Who are you?" a voice said from a speaker. Ranma waved at a   
  
video camera which had focused its unblinking eye on her.   
  
"Hey, doc, this may be a surprise, but I'm Ranma Saotome.   
  
Now, I know what you're going to say, 'Ranma Saotome is a   
  
guy!', but you know what, I can prove it." Ranma paused and   
  
drew her bokken overhead, setting up for a Gatotsu, second   
  
stance. "Aku. Soku. Zan."   
  
"Anyone who reads a few books can repeat that old   
  
catchphrase," the tinny voice of the speaker responded.   
  
"Shut up and open the door. It's freezing out here." Ranma   
  
said, irritated. "I saved you and you daughter's asses before and   
  
then saved it again from Karo."   
  
The speaker remained silent for a few seconds. Then the door   
  
slid open, revealing a graying-haired man by a computer. "I'll   
  
take it on trust that you are Ranma, though I don't see why you   
  
had the sex-change..."   
  
"Not a sex-change. Magic." Ranma said.   
  
"Magic. Yeah, right. Just something you don't understand, is   
  
all."He pulled a stick of gum out of his pocket and popped it in   
  
his mouth.   
  
"No cigarette, Doc? What gives? Finally quit?"   
  
"Don't be an idiot, Ranma, this is my lab. I don't smoke in the   
  
lab, you know that. What's your problem? We only get together   
  
when one of us is in trouble." The man got up and walked over   
  
to a tabletop covered in petri dishes. "Besides, I've got work to   
  
do."   
  
"OK. I'll make it short. I'm female because I picked up a curse   
  
in China that turns me into a girl. Hot water turns me back. An   
  
old chinese woman knows this and used a pressure point to   
  
make me extremely sensitive to heat. She's got a cure, which   
  
she is blackmailing me with." Ranma adjusted the wrists of her   
  
shirt slightly, waiting to see what the doc's first response would   
  
be.   
  
The older man was very familiar with the way Ranma's mind   
  
worked. "You want a backup plan." Ranma smiled. "You  
  
don't   
  
want to use the cure immediately, because she might move to   
  
another plan. You just want to be able to blow her out of the   
  
water safely... right?" Ranma nodded. "OK. First things first.   
  
It's a pressure point, that means she's stimulated some nerve.   
  
Your body is not, I repeat not, actually being burned by the   
  
lukewarm water, in that case."   
  
Ranma frowned slightly. "But when I put my hand in the water-   
  
"   
  
"-it swelled up and turned red as if it had been burned. Nope.   
  
That's an allergenic response." He scratched his head for a   
  
second. "So she's somehow primed your system to develop an   
  
intense allergic reaction to heat. Well, that's easily solved."   
  
Ranma blinked. "It's just an allergy?"   
  
"'Fraid so. You could just take Allegra or something. Would   
  
clear it right up - for a while. I think you want something more   
  
permanent, though. In that case, we're going to need to run   
  
some tests."   
  
Ranma sighed. Tests. Wonderful. "What exactly are you going   
  
to do?"   
  
"Nothing. I need better equipment than I've got here. By the   
  
way, if you do get that Phoenix Pill, let me analyze it. If it   
  
works as a permanent allergy pill, it would be worth a fortune.   
  
I'll give you a cut if it can be mass produced."   
  
Ranma nodded absently. That had been their deal before, and   
  
why Ranma could afford to wander around Asia on her father's   
  
mad training itinerary. "That's not all. Karo's traning equipm-  
  
"   
  
"Take it," the doc said, getting back to his work. "I've got no   
  
use for his stuff."   
  
"Thank you, Professor Tomoe." Ranma said, bowing. She   
  
walked out of the laboratory and around to the back, where a   
  
large trash heap of equipment surrounded what looked like an   
  
ordinary trailer. Ranma kicked the junk out of her way and   
  
checked the outside of the trailer, trying to gauge the damage to   
  
the outside.'Seems to be in good shape,' Ranma thought, and   
  
picked up the trailer hitch. She tied a piece of rope to it, then   
  
began dragging it out of the yard.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
Ranma finished setting up the trailer in the abandoned yard next   
  
to the Tendo's house and ran a few extension cords out to it.   
  
She then went inside and made sure all the equipment was in   
  
working order. 'I'll show that Chinese mummy what she's   
  
dealing with.' Ranma thought angrily. Being the target of such   
  
clumsy manipulation infuriated her. When she came out, she   
  
found all three Tendo sisters waiting for her.   
  
"Hey Ranma, what's with the RV? Going camping?" Nabiki   
  
asked. For once, she was genuinely mystified. She had seen   
  
Ranma drag the thing into the lot, and that might be good   
  
training, but she was apparently going to stay in it.   
  
"Nah, just donated by a..." Ranma realized that Karo certainly   
  
didn't count as a 'friend' at all, "associate. It's in aid of   
  
accelerated training."   
  
Akane looked at it. "How does this trailer help anyone train?"   
  
Akane asked, looking at it. It seemed a perfectly ordinary   
  
camper.   
  
"It's depressurized, for the most part, but it also has a hgih-   
  
oxygen hyperbaric chamber." Ranma said. She was about to   
  
explain further, when Kasumi interrupted.   
  
"Oh! I see!" Kasumi said suddenly. "Just like training in the   
  
mountains!"   
  
"Yes, exactly. And high oxygen-"   
  
"-let's you heal faster." Kasumi said. "But you already heal  
  
fast,   
  
Ranma."   
  
Ranma just smiled.   
  
Akane's face paled. "Something tells me I'm going to need to   
  
use that chamber too."   
  
Ranma's grin spread even wider. "Exactly, oh practice   
  
dummy. I'm going to train like I've never trained before.   
  
Nabiki? Nabiki?"   
  
Nabiki was running her hands over the outside of the trailer.   
  
Why, with a trailer like this, or a few, she could make a fortune   
  
renting them to the athletics clubs at Furinkan - and other   
  
schools. "Has this been patented yet?" she asked greedily.   
  
"Not to my knowledge. My tapes?" Ranma asked, holding her   
  
hand out. Nabiki slapped a VHS tape into the outstretched   
  
palm, which quickly made the tape disappear.   
  
"They train over on the other side of the school, next to the   
  
construction site. She seems pretty fast, Ranma, I think the tape   
  
is a bit blurry."   
  
"That's OK. I only need to know her general reflexes and   
  
speed." That would give her a target to work for over the next   
  
two or three weeks.   
  
"Well, this is all very interesting." Kasumi said. "Dinner is   
  
ready. And Ranma?"   
  
"Yes?"   
  
"I'll bring your things out to the trailer."   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
'..nothing beats modern technology for training. Nothing. The   
  
finest ancient training grounds, in my opinion, can't match up   
  
against something set up with modern science.' Ranma grinned   
  
smugly in the dark. 'The old mummy, of course, knows nothing   
  
of modern science. Her training methods are centuries too old   
  
to match it.' Ranma then frowned, and returned to writing. 'Of   
  
course, having a superior training setup doesn't mean anything   
  
if you don't plan what you're going to do with it. I seriously   
  
need to work on my hand-to-hand, which I will do with Tendo-   
  
san and Akane. However, with my sword techniques, I don't   
  
have any decent opponents. I plan to work on raw strength and   
  
speed. And for a final surprise, I've always got Karo's little   
  
secret.' Ranma turned away from the window, her voice rasping   
  
in the thin air, muscles sore- but not too sore, after a stay in that   
  
cramped high-pressure coffin - from all her training, and pulled   
  
out a clear bag of purple goo. She smiled again, even in the rarefied  
  
air.   
  
Cologne would never know what hit her.   
  
** * * * * * * * * * * * * **   
  
Well, that was probably unexpected - but, then again, Saito   
  
always believed in Aku, Soku, Zan, and beyond that, relied on   
  
strict functionality and direct action with his swords. 


End file.
